European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 16, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 a the stars and stripes Friday november 16,1990 letters resentment bubbles Over canned Coke a recent article a Carrier duty goes better with a can of Coke sailors say a infuriated Many soldiers of my infantry scout platoon. We  believe that the men of the aircraft Carrier Kennedy were raising such a fuss Over a can of Coke. These Are the same men who have 10 soda dispensers which they can freely use at no Cost. Furthermore we  believe such a minute problem is being brought to the attention of senators and the first lady Barbara Bush. We could Only wish that not getting a can of Coke were the worst of our problems. If getting a can of Coke Means that much to the men of the aircraft Carrier Kennedy the men of the 2/7 inf scout platoon have an offer for them. We would gladly Trade a our Fly infested straddle Trench latrine for your clean Flushing porcelain seat latrine. A our tasteless res and warm bottled water for your recently cooked mess Hall meals with fresh vegetables and 10 soda dispensing machines. A our Man portable 23-Pound, pc 77 for your phone privileges. A our Washtub and tide for your laundry service. A our 10-hour sandstorms for your Cool Ocean Breeze. A a our 8-Day-old stars and stripes for your Chance to take College courses. A our heavy uncomfortable Kevlar for your Light Garrison Caps. Amp a our sponge Baths for your showers with running water. 6 a our bottles of warm drinking water for your ice machines. A our scorpion infested ground for your bed with clean sheets and a Pillow. And we will even throw in our hot can of coca cola. A spec. . Brasfield and the 2/7 inf scouts operation desert shield i agree with Navy it. Cmdr. Steve Honda in his decision to deny the canned cokes aboard aircraft carriers being a helicopter Crew chief on oh-58c scout of cont no 1 la army it 1 understand the dangers of Fod foreign object  lab off a Coke can May cause serious damage orf."1 is could Cost an enormous amount and the loss of life. 1 hat Price is too High to pay for a can of Coke. Here s the Bottom line the commander is looking aircraft evei7�ne�?Ts safety and preventable damage to in response to the complaint about discrimination for ground troops remember the next time that you eat Dew a Jour. Salley it the ground troops Are eating res and to rations if you Ever had to eat res a of a or rats for along period of time you might have a different Way of thinking. I know Many gis who would love to have one of those Fountain drink machines. If you think that a bad leave your air conditioner and Telephone and come join us on the hot desert floor. What i am saying to you personnel on those carriers is suck it up and drive on. My Girlfriend or parents would love to get a phone Call from me Over Here. A spec. Troy h. Mccann operation desert shield this has raised a lot turmoil among those i am dres entry serving with. If the Lack of a a can of cokes is the Only hardship the sailors have to endure then they should feel very Lucky a 1 Ai presently serving with the 101st airborne air assault div As an infantry Soldier. The hardships we endure easily outweigh the cans of Coke we get. Here a of we sleep on the a mud. We sleep in an old dilapidated tent. We drink hot water in the daytime have no phones to Call our wives and get sporadic mail service. We eat res instead of hot meals All Day and we get one Shower every four Days. Now i would gladly give my can of Coke to a Sailor if Mew Fly Nhim  Hump my m_6� machine gun and 100-Pound-plus Rucksack through 120-plus-de Gree heat when the firing starts. A spec. Jason l. Bailey operation desert shield i am on Board the Carrier Independence and proud to be a part of operation desert shield. I can understand the Juk s concern for minimizing trash and keeping Roaches off the ship. Foreign object damage hazards Are also hard to fight on an aircraft Carrier. I have deployed on three different aircraft carriers All smaller than the Juk and we have always managed instead of Coke its bottled water to quench that desert thirst. A amps Vince Crawley to work out any problems. Good housekeeping goes a Long Way. A cold can of soda can really improve a Sailor s Day at sea. Any Sailor on an aircraft Carrier can Tell that a soda from the mess decks is not the a real  to the Carrier John f. Kennedy i ask that you give our shipmates their canned soda Back. A Petty officer 1st class Leroy e. Mumford operation desert shield id be Happy for a free Fountain soda. During a sailors tour of duty on a ship he regularly spends Long cruises at sea. Now in the midst of a crisis everybody fusses about luxury items. What difference is this cruise compared to others really we have a Mission a real world Mission then they want to complain Bush congressmen and even first lady Barbara when i and everyone else signed on the dotted line i the pm we didst expect what private Benjamin did. In a in the desert in saudi Arabia and in a glad to have tra inf a could comp Ain about dozens of things drive on conflict we have to suck it up and Bea people grip about the inconveniences All the time and it makes me sick. Be glad you have the commodities you do and if others get something you done to be Happy for them. As an infantryman i find that the Only Way to survive and not be a miserable person a lot of things in the military a a rent to fair a but now serve and defend not to cry and whine Coke Whu ?16 missis Quot a Quot Dru drink my a spec. Todd c. Bollinger operation desert shield As a member of the Juk Carrier air Wing team i to not recall having heard of any complaining or Comins pipht11011 1? Cass of soft drinks were delivered to troops in country in saudi Arabia while it is True that a Large number of individuals do not agree with the commanding officers decision to keen Juk Thuc t trash problem most have a Cense this policy if not begrudgingly. Tea the main complaint you will hear is that Chines that dispense soft drinks Are frequently not work Quot my properly or not stocked adequately this is a ii pm that lies within our own ability to impress unon those who maintain and Stock soft drink isl is their Job is a major Factor in the Crews morale reduce thess Groks s trials Are bagged and stored on Board until Ril a  ? Supply ship that has the ability to nans i suggest that the main concerns Are Storaa ref of i and added Large volume of trash storage ind Dua inability to use trash containers and yes an increased pest control problem. Of course lets not forget the extra Man hours of maintaining equipment and replacement parts stocking of equipment and merchandise plus financial and administrative support. Kind of Petty i agree. Complaining about whether we have canned soft drinks on Board does seem Petty compared to the comforts that the other services enjoy we who serve on naval ships put in Long and hard Days far from Home and our duty is unique from others. I submit that a Large percentage of us have chosen not to be with the ground troops by enlisting in the Navy to serve our country based on an idea that life aboard ship is More comfortable than in the Jungle or desert with ground forces. With that thought in mind canned soda seems a Small pri9�. To pay for a clean dry Cool warm place to serve and live far from Home. A Petty officer 1st class . Luse operation desert shield first let me say that All of us in the armed forces close what Branch to enter and naturally some branches live better than others. Please let me enlighten you on How most All soldiers and i will not forget the marines live in the Field a we Wash from a 5-gallon can of water. A we Wash clothes in a 3-gallon bucket. A our dining facility is our Lap a eating res. A we sleep on the hoods of vehicles the ground or anywhere that it is Safe to lie. A our air conditioner is the desert Breeze. T the Only College courses my men receive is survival training. They do not receive credit for it. A water is rationed daily to All my men. A most of us Are so far away from civilization that we to not receive any radio signal. A the stars and stripes is always seven Days behind. Has no to we have no recreational equipment except for playing cards. A we dig holes to perform our daily Constitution. A we have no Exchange to Purchase goods. Not na111 morale boosters Are our mail and our one can of soda a Day. Complain about what they do no instead they make the Best of what they do have. Not by the so a Fountain and take Ciamp it k 3 up it fit its cold and Sweet App re we use when we get ours its sometimes warm. Thankful for a soday a a 2 so a we k./ini/u/0. A of to the non complainers of the Carrier Ion Keln. Vul Navy. You Are All doing a fantastic us we will Nih c grea11?Ork on guarding the Gulf. As for rth Era for As Vonsas it takes Moonlight in used to write this was a staff sgt. John p. Rainville i operation desert shield p7c a Tephen Worth sgt. Jack Smith spec ?i2 pole spec. Nathaniel Copeland a Rusf Fossa. Sgt. Christopher Maes